Liveblog: Amazon’s New York (tablet) press event

Tomorrow, Amazon is expected to enter the tablet fray with a new product …

On Wednesday at 10am EDT, Amazon will be holding a press event in New York City in which it is widely expected to introduce its own Android tablet. The move will mark a big departure for the online retailer, which has been using a custom version of Linux to power its eInk-based Kindle devices. There's a chance that Amazon will retain its focus on reading and release a device that's similar to Barnes & Noble's Nook, but most are expecting that the company will be producing a general purpose tablet, much like Apple's iPad.

We'll be on hand for the introduction and to give you a live play-by-play of the new product's introduction.

I've heard rumors of a $250 price point, which is enticing. I've also heard that it will be a 7" form factor, which is kinda small for me, but we'll see what it offers. I may just skip buying a Kindle/Nook and get one of these, so long as it can outperform a rooted Nook, at least.

I've heard rumors of a $250 price point, which is enticing. I've also heard that it will be a 7" form factor, which is kinda small for me, but we'll see what it offers. I may just skip buying a Kindle/Nook and get one of these, so long as it can outperform a rooted Nook, at least.

I also read that it was rushed out for the holidays and thus very 1.0 quality. Not sure how true that is though. It will be interesting to see how it stacks up.

I missed out on the TouchPad firesale and still a bit bummed out over that (the one time in ages that I didnt visit the news/tech sites and they have the firesale ) so am hoping this can make up for it!

I love Amazon, got some wonderful deals from there and the customer service was just fantastic even though I am buying from Europe (Sweden)... oh, speaking of which, let me clarify, I am talking about .com NOT the European versions like Amazon.co.uk and .de which sucks dirty slimy alligator genitalia with regards to pricing and selection.Even with postage to Sweden the .com offers some sweeeeet deals.

Back on topic, I hope its ~10 inches, don't want the smaller tablets that some like because I would be using it a lot for video...Glad to see Ars is covering it, will check back for updates!

I am thinking it's going to be a bit underwhelming as a iPad competitor - but the key will be Kindle and Amazon media integration. I also expect them to sell this as a loss leader - because they are confident idiots like me will spend a ton on books.

Predictions:- 7" form factor - thin and light with a very large battery. It will preserve current kindle ergonomics.- Some form of customized hardware buttons for book reading.- Customized Android 2.x.- Mediocre specs - no dual core, 16GB/512MB.- No fancy dual mode screen - probably a standard mediocre LCD.- Netflix is purchased by Amazon.- Extremely tight integration with the kindle reader. (duh)- Amazon app store, amazon movie/TV store, amazon music store.- Amazon cloud storage for all media.

Looking forward to this, not so much for the Android-based tablet, but for a somehow better e-ink reader, or at least a price drop on the Kindle 3.

I don't think you'll get either. My wife has wanted a Kindle since she test drove one back in July, although she was also looking at a Nook alongside it. I asked her to wait to choose an e-ink reader until Amazon came out with a new one in Oct/Nov. It doesn't seem like Amazon has an interest in updating the e-ink reader anytime soon - there is little reason to at this point. Their tablet is more of an Amazon ecosystem delivery device than anything else. There is not a lot of profit to be had when the e-ink reader ONLY allows for book purchases. I doubt they could/would drop the price further on the current Kindle, they are already eating a good portion of the cost.

It seems that the new one will essentially be a rebranded RIM Playbook until Amazon gets some custom hardware designed. The end game as I see it will be a tablet that utilizes the dual display technology where you can switch from the standard LCD to e-ink screen. That technology exists but is still pretty new, which equals costly. This is pure speculation, but it might make sense to be able to provide a complete platform to serve all customers - e-ink lovers and tablet lovers alike.

I don't think you'll get either. My wife has wanted a Kindle since she test drove one back in July, although she was also looking at a Nook alongside it. I asked her to wait to choose an e-ink reader until Amazon came out with a new one in Oct/Nov. It doesn't seem like Amazon has an interest in updating the e-ink reader anytime soon - there is little reason to at this point.

The only thing I can think of is that they'll drop the keyboard for a touch-screen, to keep feature parity with the Sony readers etc. (but hopefully still keep real, tactile page turn buttons)

Quote:

The end game as I see it will be a tablet that utilizes the dual display technology where you can switch from the standard LCD to e-ink screen. That technology exists but is still pretty new, which equals costly. This is pure speculation, but it might make sense to be able to provide a complete platform to serve all customers - e-ink lovers and tablet lovers alike.

This would be great, though I'm not sure the technology is both available and feasible (possibly at any price, though I haven't kept up to date with the latest in e-paper).. the Adam tablet's Pixel Qi screen rings a bell, and I think that ended up quite underwhelming.

Just a different sort of reminder... tomorrow (Sep 28) @ 9am PST... HP will start selling TouchPads internally. One per employee. I know I've got a few "beg-outs" to a few HP friends

I'm a little pissed off by this since I still have an open order From August 21st that hasn't been filled yet, yet received an e-mail that my order is supposed to be filled in 6 to 8 weeks. You'd think that people that have already been waiting over a month and had their order processed would get their order filled first. Then they could sell the remaining stock internally. Seems HP is screwing its customers again and giving its employees first dibs on their customers hardware they already ordered and have a pending charge on their credit cards. If my order gets canceled due to lack of stock I'll never buy another HP/Compaq product again in my life, and I'm sure I'm not alone. This is really BS on HP's part once again.

I'm hoping we do, and while I generally support Apple, I'd love to see real competition in this space. Up to now it's been lame efforts, shifty 'sales' data and a few nice tablets destroyed by either developer stupidity (logging too much usage data, slowing the device down) or corporate suicide ("HP and the Strange Case of the Touchpad").

I'm hoping Amazon can produce a solid competitor to the iPad, spurring the industry onwards.

I missed out on the TouchPad firesale and still a bit bummed out over that (the one time in ages that I didnt visit the news/tech sites and they have the firesale ) so am hoping this can make up for it!

I love Amazon, got some wonderful deals from there and the customer service was just fantastic even though I am buying from Europe (Sweden)... oh, speaking of which, let me clarify, I am talking about .com NOT the European versions like Amazon.co.uk and .de which sucks dirty slimy alligator genitalia with regards to pricing and selection.Even with postage to Sweden the .com offers some sweeeeet deals.

Back on topic, I hope its ~10 inches, don't want the smaller tablets that some like because I would be using it a lot for video...Glad to see Ars is covering it, will check back for updates!

You'll probably be better off in the end, with a supported device from a company with a clear focus and mostly sane board of directors.

I'm hoping we do, and while I generally support Apple, I'd love to see real competition in this space. Up to now it's been lame efforts, shifty 'sales' data and a few nice tablets destroyed by either developer stupidity (logging too much usage data, slowing the device down) or corporate suicide ("HP and the Strange Case of the Touchpad").

I'm hoping Amazon can produce a solid competitor to the iPad, spurring the industry onwards.

I'm pretty sure Amazon will go towards the lower end price- and hardware-wise and emphasize the media consumption side of this. Only reasonable I would say, but I doubt very much that this will produce a real iPad killer. Expect something very close to the Nook Color. Surely a competitor to the iPad in some regards, but not in all.

What I'm wondering about is the integration (or the lack of integration) with the Google Cloud. Email, calendaring etc. is something you definitely want to do with a tablet and if Amazon totally sidelines Google here you'd have to go with third-party apps, possibly from the Amazon App Store only. An ugly thought, somehow.

I wonder if they will go to Microsoft and use whatever Windows Phone is using for email and calendaring? Is it Windows Live?

uhuznaa wrote:

What I'm wondering about is the integration (or the lack of integration) with the Google Cloud. Email, calendaring etc. is something you definitely want to do with a tablet and if Amazon totally sidelines Google here you'd have to go with third-party apps, possibly from the Amazon App Store only. An ugly thought, somehow.

I am not interested in another android device, I think Amazon should spend all their R&D to make color e-ink, develop that, increase refresh rates etc. They have the best looking, best working e-ink device. I want a device that simulates the experience of reading a book, as someone who works in IT, the last thing I want when I try and relax and read is another backlit LCD screen. After 10 hours in the office, 2 hours at home, my iPhone, etc.

Why does Ars live blog always completely fail? I'm not talking just technical difficultites, which they seem to have at every major media event, but they are incredibly slow when compared to Engadget, AppleInsider, MacRumors or any other number of live blogs whether it's Apple or Amazon. It's incredibly frustrating to watch 10 minutes of content go by on Engadget with only 2-3 lines of updates from Ars in the same time period.